Cancer Facts and Breast Cancer

Cancer is the enlargement of the abnormal cells in the body. It is a life threatening condition and is a global health problem today.

Cancer damage the cell to form lumps or masses of tissue called tumour. The cancerous cells spread to other parts of the body and grows destroying the healthy tissues.This process is called metastasis.

Seven warning signs of Cancer:
C - Change in bowel and bladder patterns
A - A sore that does not heal.
U - Unusual bleeding or discharge.
T - Thickening or lump in breast, testicles or elsewere
I - Indigestion or difficulty swallowing.
O - Obvious change in the size, color, shape or thickness of a wart, mole. 
N - Nagging cough.

Symptoms: In some types of Cancer following symptoms can be seen:

• Weight loss
• Loss of appetite
• Joint pain
• Persistent fatigue
• Nausea or vomiting
• Persistent headache 
• Persistent low grade fever
• Reinfection

Breast Cancer: Breast cancer is the enlargement of abnormal cells of the breast. It starts from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply with milk.

Breast cancer is the most common invasive cancer seen in females. The rate of breast cancer is higher in developed countries in comparision to developing countries because of the life styles and
eating habits.

Types of Breast Cancer: Breast cancer can be divided into two categorizes namely: Invasive breast
cancer and Non- Invasive breast cancer

1. Invasive breast cancer: Invasive means it invades the nearby tissue of the breast. The cancerous cell breaks out from the ducts or lobules and make the way to the other body parts usually known as metastasis. It invades the parts such as bones, liver, lungs. It travels through the
   bloodstream or lymphatic system.
2. Non-invasive breast cancer: The cancer remains inside the place from where it is originated. It does not invades the other parts except breast. Non-invasive breast cancer

Classification :
Lobular Carcinoma Insitu (LClS): It remains inside the lobules.
Ductal Carcinoma Insitu (DClS): It remains inside the milk ducts.
Invasive Ductal Carcinoma (IDC): It starts inside the milk ducts and also invades the surrounding healthy tissues within the breast.
Invasive lobular Carcinoma (ILC): It starts inside the lobules and also invades the surrounding healthy tissues within the breast.
Inflammatory Breast Cancer: It is the fast growing form of breast cancer that begins with the reddening and swelling of the breast.

Paget's Disease of the Nipple: It is rare where the cancer cells get collected surrounding the nipple.
Phyllodes Tumors of the Breast: It appears in the collective tissue of the breast and grow rapidly
in a life shape. It may or may not be cancerous.
Recurrent/ Metastatic Breast Cancer: It spreads beyond the breast and travels to the other different
body parts through blood stream or lymphatic system.


Risk factors:

• Genetic
• Refusal to breast feed
• Obesity
• Old age
• Inadequate physical activity
• Early Menarche
• Alcoholism
• Hormonal Replacement Therapy during Menopouse
• Life style modification
• Smoking, tobacco chewers
• Exposure to radiation
• Greater height women.

Pathophysiology:

Due to ecological factor

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cells in the body begins to grow out of control

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It destroys the DNA

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lack of DNA repaired occurs due to which the newer abnormal cell birth takes place  

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Metastasis takes places through blood stream or lymphatic system

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Decrease the immune mechanism
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Shows the clinical signs and symptoms

Signs/ Symptoms:

Individual with breast cancer get appear with the signs of lump in the breast,
change in shape of the breast, bloody discharge present in the nipple or red scaly patch of skinn,
dimpling of the skin. Sunken or inverted nipple, rash around the nipples, swelling beneath the
armpits, enlargement of one breast.

Diagnosis: 

The most easy method to diagnose breast cancer is Breast Self Eamination. In Breast Self Examination, one stands in front of the mirror and inspect her breast by observation and
palpation. This helps to find out any lump present, abnormal discharge, shape of breast.
Another way is through Biopsy: In this procedure, a sample of the breast tissue is taken through
invasive techniques with biopsy needle and sent to lab for analysis. It determine the presence of
cancerous cells.

Mammogram: It is the commonly used procedure in which X-ray image is used to sereen the breast cancer.
Breast Ultrasound: It is done for the women who are less than thirty five years of age.

Stages of breast cancer:

Stage 0: Carcinoma insitu in which the concer is present at the site of origin.

Stage 1: At this stage tumour is less than 2cm and the lymph nodes in the armpit are not affected.

Stage 2: At this stage tumour measures in between 2cm to 5cm or lyphm node in the armpits mayor may not be affected.

Stage 3: At this stage tumour measures in between 2cm to 5cm and may be adhere to structures in the breast such as skin or surrounding tissue lymph node in armpit are affected.

Stage 4: At this stage tumour spread to the other parts like lungs, liver.

Grading of Cancer: TNM classification is used to describe the grading of cancer. 

Where, T stands for the size of tumour, N stands for spreading of cancer to lymph node and M stands for Metastasis.

Treatment of breast cancer:
Standarized management used in breast cancer:

Local Therapy: It usually includes surgery lumpectomy: lump or the tumour is removed along with the small tissue surrounded by it through surgery.

Partial Mastectomy: A small portion of breast with cancer cell and healthy tissues surrounded by it
is removed through surgery. This process of removal is also called segmental mastectomy.

Lymph Node dissection: The lymph nodes under the arm is removed for the biopsy through
incision.

Modified Radical Mastectomy: The whole breast that contain cancerous cells, lymph nodes under
the arm, the lining of the chest muscles is removed through surgery.

Systemic Therapy ( Adjuvant Therapy): It includes chemotherapy, hormone therapy and targeted
therapy.

Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy is the drugs that is given to remove the cancer before the surgery.
It will shink the cancer cell and reduce the size of cancerous cell which is to be removed during
surgery. It is also known as neoadjuvant therapy as the treatment begins before surgery.

Radiation Therapy: It is the Cancer treatment with the use of radiation or x-rays to destroy the
cancer cells and inhibit them from the growth. It is of two types which is used externally and
internally. External radiation means outside the body with the help of machine the beam of rays
are send towards the cancer cells from outside. Internal radiation means use of radiation substance
sealed with needles, seeds, wires that are kept directly inside the body into the cancer cells.

Hormone therapy: Hormone therapy is the cancer treatment that inhibit the action of hormone or remove hormone and stop the growth of the cancer cells. As hormone increases the risk of cancer cell to grow, it should be treated at early stage. Hormone therapy with tamoxifen is oftenly used in early stages of breast cancer. Hormone therapy with an aromatse inhibitor is used for the postmenopausal women who have hormone dependent breast cancer.

Targeted therapy: It is the treatment in which the drugs or substances are used to identify and attack specific cancer cells without harming the healthy cells. Monoclonal antibodies and tyrosine kinase inhibitors are the targeted therapies used to treat the breast cancer.